The Curly-Coated Retriever is a large breed, an athletic retriever that has a distinctive crisp curly coat that is thick and comes in a black or a live-colored shade. The coat protects the dog from icy waters and brambles. The dog's little curs can be found even on the small-sized ears, the neck, the tail and the back of the head; only the front of the legs, face and hocks are smooth. The Curly-Coated Retriever is an agile, strong, elegant and graceful dog that is easily trainable and known for its intelligence.
The dog's limbs are muscular while the head is wedge-shaped, longer than it is wide. The Curly-Coated Retriever's foreface and skull are just about the same in length, with their toplines forming parallel planes when you look at them from the side. The black colored dogs have a black nose while the liver colored dogs have a brown or amber colored nose. The dog has either chestnut or black eyes and keeps its tail straight.
This breed was created in the late 1700s and is considered to be one of the oldest retriever breeds, formed by mixing the Close-Curled English Water Dog, the Old Water Spaniel and the St. John's Newfoundland dog. Other sources suggest that the dog was created by crossing the Iris Water Spaniel, the Poodle and the Labrador. Not very popular in United States, this dog has many fans in New Zealand but most of all, in Australia.
The Curl-Coated Retriever is a very intelligent and confident dog that loves being around children as they are very lovable companions. Known for their swimming abilities, these dogs like doing things their own way but if properly trained they are very efficient for duck hunts. Due to the fact that this breed has the tendency to be reserved ( even timid ) with strangers, they should be socialized at an early age to prevent any problems.
The dog is very energetic and needs a lot of exercising but also mental stimulation in order to be entirely happy. They aren't recommended for apartment living as they need a lot of space to run around that is why a large yard is recommended for this breed. Their life expectancy is around 10 years.